Selina Cadell is an actress with an impressive pedigree. A star of stage, film and TV, as well as a producer and director of plays and operas, she also comes from a noted theatrical family.
And Selina takes time out from an impressive schedule (she is always working when she isn’t working on screen!) to talk to Alisdair Kitchen in the third episode of “RyePod” from Rye Arts Festival.
As an actress of note in leading and supporting roles on TV and in film, Selina has an instantly recognisable face. She is Mrs Tishell in “Doc Martin” on TV and has appeared in Victoria Wood and The Catherine Tate Shows, but has also directed Congreve’s “Love for Love” for the Royal Shakespeare Company, which shows her versatility.
Selina engages in a wide -ranging conversation about her life and career, which came to an abrupt stop with Covid-19, just as her production of “The Turn of the Screw” opera was about to open in Wilton’s Musical Hall in London.
This creates a link with Rye, since the Benjamin Britten opera is based on a short story by perhaps the town’s most famous former resident, Henry James. And, of course, Alisdair produced, designed and directed a highly-acclaimed production of “The Turn of the Screw” at Rye Arts Festival in 2016.
Selina talks to Alisdair about her approach to directing both actors and opera singers and how she believes the director should stay in the background as the actors do their thing of telling a good story using the text, rather than creating an overarching directorial concept.
Selina talks about the rewards she gets from devising, producing and directing but the acting blood runs deep within her (brother Simon was famously the well-meaning camp manager Jeffrey Fairbrother in the iconic TV comedy “Hi-de-Hi!”, her grandmother Jean was a noted stage and movie star from the golden era of films, and her father was a theatrical agent), so she reveals the roles she would still like to play!
Episode 3 of RyePod goes live at 8am on Friday, May 23. But, of course, you can listen to podcasts when you like and also listen to previous episodes, so you can check out the Royal Opera House’s musical director Sir Antonio Pappano in conversation with Alisdair Kitchen in Episode 1 and former Level 42 drummer Phil Gould in Episode 2, which reflects Rye Arts Festival’s multi-arts offering!
RyePod is widely available on all the major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify. A comprehensive list is available at www.anchor.fm/ryepod
Image Credits: Rye Arts Festival .